THE CHEYENNE OUTBREAK

On September 9, 1878, after a year of suffering on an Oklahoma
reservation, some 300 Northern Cheyenne Indians began a trek back
to their homeland. Dull Knife's band of 149 Indians were captured
and taken to Fort Robinson. For months they refused to return
to their hated reservation.

Captain Wessels, Commanding Officer at Fort Robinson, imprisoned
the Indians in a log barracks and attempted to starve them into
submission. Using the few weapons they had smuggled into the building,
the younger warriors began the Cheyenne Outbreak about 9:00 p.m.,
January 9, 1879. After a desperate running battle on the snow-covered
parade ground, the Indians managed to follow the banks of the
White River, scale the cliffs and escape.

Unable to find horses, the Cheyenne eluded pursuing troops
for 12 days by heading northwest through the rough terrain of
the Pine Ridge. Soldiers discovered their hiding place on Antelope
Creek January 22, but the Indians refused to surrender. During
the outbreak, 64 Cheyenne and 11 soldiers were killed. More than
70 were recaptured and several escaped. The number of casualties
made the Cheyenne Outbreak one of the major conflicts of the Indian
Wars.